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James Brains,Kylie Joyner,Malarie GokeyDec 20, 2018, 20:30 IST
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Toaster ovens serve as a miniature version of the traditional oven and they offer an array of functions, including broiling, roasting, toasting, and convection cooking.
The Cuisinart Chef's Convection Toaster Oven is the best toaster oven you can buy because it's easy to use, heats quickly, bakes evenly, and comes with all the accessories you need, including a pizza stone.
Living in environmentally-conscious times, it may feel like a waste heating up a full-size oven just to make a small meal. And, if you have a small kitchen, a traditional oven may not be an option. This is where toaster ovens can help you save on space and utility bills.
Even if you have a large kitchen, a toaster oven is useful for the heavy-cooking holidays, such as Thanksgiving when you need to cook and warm several dishes at different temperatures at the same time.
There are almost as many heating options available as there are brands. When buying a toaster oven, you also want to consider how much space you will have. Most models will fit between your counter and the bottom of your cabinets. If space is at a premium in your dwelling, be sure to pay special attention to the dimensions of the toaster ovens you are interested in.
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We examined the ratings and reviews of hundreds of top users and experts to see which toaster ovens offer the best value for your money, do what they say they can do, and perform consistently. Read on to learn all about our top picks.
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Cuisinart’s Chef’s Convection Toaster Oven is the best toaster oven we've tested. Not only is it easy to use, it also bakes evenly, has plenty of settings, and comes with helpful accessories like a pizza stone, two baking racks, and two baking pans.
With its 0.95-cubic-foot capacity, the oven can hold a 13-inch pizza, a 9-by-13-inch baking pan, a whole chicken, and nine slices of bread. Even though it holds a lot, the toaster oven itself isn't terribly huge. It measures 21 by 17 by 11 inches in size, plus, it looks good in any kitchen, thanks to its brushed stainless steel finish.
The Chef's Toaster Oven has 15 cooking functions, including several helpful pre-sets for foods you'll make a lot like toast, pizza, and sandwiches. It also has a speed convection setting for when you want to get cooking really fast. The 1800 watt oven heats up very quickly and Cuisinart's Exact Heat sensor ensures that the temperature is accurate.
We never had to wait very long for it to reach baking temperatures of 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and it toasts bread perfectly in a matter of minutes. We used the toaster oven to bake pain aux raisin, cuernitos, homemade pizza, and cinnamon rolls. We also warmed up French onion soup, broiled fish, and cooked meals in it for a month to really put it through the test, and it passed with flying colors.
The interior light makes it easy to see what's going on inside behind the big glass door, so you can monitor the progress of your toast, pizza, croissants, or what have you. We found the light particularly helpful when we were still learning the oven's settings.
The baking rack automatically slides out when you open the door, making it easy to pull out your hot baked goods. The interior was easy to clean, too, because of the pull-out crumb tray. All these little features add up to make a great toaster oven that's easy to use.
We're not the only ones that recommend the Chef's Convection Toaster Oven. The Wirecutter recommends this oven as the best large toaster oven. Good Housekeeping Institute tested an older model of this oven and gave it high marks. Techlicious also gave an older version of this oven a great review.
Buyers on Bed Bath & Beyond as well as Amazon rate it highly, and it's won an Amazon's Choice Award. There have been some reports of the door failing over time, some say the labels rub off the buttons, and others complain that it gets hot to the touch.
However, Cuisinart does warn that the sides will heat up and you should remove any meltable objects from the top and sides before you begin baking. The oven comes with a three-year warranty, too, so if you do run into any problems, contact Cuisinart for a replacement. — Malarie Gokey
Pros: Comes with pizza stone and pans, easy to use, bakes evenly, lots of settings
The main feature that sets the Breville Mini Smart Oven apart is its use of Element IQ variable power distribution. It works like this: Food is cooked more quickly and evenly using the power of four individual quartz heating elements. This distributes heat throughout the appliance where it is needed. The oven adjusts the wattage of the heating elements up to 1,800 watts for flexible cooking based on the heating menu options you choose. The pre-set menu options include toast, bake, broil, roast, cookies, reheat, pizza, and bagel.
With dimensions of 16 by 13 by 9 inches, the Breville Mini Smart Oven is the smallest toaster oven Breville makes, and it can fit four slices of toast or an 11-inch pizza inside. Among the many features that make the unit easy to clean are the removable pull-out crumb tray. You should change it often to ensure the device doesn’t malfunction, as most toaster ovens are designed to stop functioning when crumbs build up to an unsafe level.
Expert reviews of the Breville Mini Smart Oven were almost all positive. Compact Appliance rated it highly for its basic functions as well as the sleek, stainless steel design. The reviewer found the “Smart” term in the name of the device to be a bit misleading because there is no special Wi-Fi functionality. Amy Says Cook performed an in-depth review and found this toaster oven preheats quickly and allows for total cooking control. Time 4 Toast, which exclusively reviews toaster ovens, recommended this model despite the high price because of the Element IQ technology.
The Breville Mini Smart Oven has more than 1,200 five-star reviews on Amazon. Buyers report that this toaster oven is durable and performs just as well if not better than traditional ovens. The biggest complaints are that the buzzer is extremely loud and that the handle to the oven door sticks out too far.
Pros: Durable, easy to clean broad array of cooking functions
Why you'll love it: The Calphalon Quartz Heat Countertop Oven heats quickly and evenly, has an easy-to-read screen, and comes with a nice range of accessories.
Whether you live in a small space that doesn’t allow for a traditional oven, or you’re in need of a countertop oven that can help you handle the frenzy of holiday cooking, the Calphalon Quartz Heat Countertop oven is an option well worth considering. This oven features a quartz heating element that allows for more even heating and cooking.
I put this countertop oven to the test to see if it lived up to the promise of fast, precise cooking. During the Thanksgiving holiday, I put it through the paces, and I was pleased with the results. It preheated quickly, and everything we cooked — including a corn casserole and roasted cherry tomatoes — came out perfectly.
The best part is that we had another oven to use for cooking sides while our main oven was busy cooking the turkey for dinner. If you enjoy entertaining, or simply need additional oven space, a countertop oven is a great thing to have in your arsenal of kitchen appliances.
I would also recommend this for those who have a smaller living space or kitchen that may not support a full-sized oven. It can handle all the jobs a traditional oven can, plus it doubles as a toaster. Along with the toast function, ten other cooking functions are available: Bagel, Pizza, Bake, Broil, Roast, Defrost, Reheat, Warm, Cookies, and Dehydrate. It also has a turbo convection setting to crisp up food.
Its larger capacity allows it to cook larger dishes than smaller toaster ovens, but you’ll want to measure your countertop space to ensure a good fit. We had no issue fitting this onto our countertop, and while we likely won’t leave it out all the time, it does blend in well with the rest of our appliances thanks to the sleek, dark stainless steel design.
In addition to having a wide range of cooking functions and a bright, easy to read LCD screen, this countertop oven features a light so you can easily check on your culinary masterpiece — or your piece of toast. Either way, it’s another useful feature to help ensure the cooking process goes smoothly.
I also liked that the oven comes with all the accessories you need to get started, including a wire rack, a baking sheet, a 12-inch pizza pan, and a dehydrator rack. The oven itself is easy to use thanks to the clearly labeled knobs and LCD screen that shows you the temperature setting, cooking function, and time if you choose to use the timer.
I’m not the only one who had great results using the Calphalon Quartz Heat Countertop Oven. This appliance has received highly rated reviews on Amazon and is considered an Amazon’s Choice product. Some reviewers do complain about the high price, and others wish the power cord was a bit longer. Overall though, most love how quickly it heats, how well it cooks, and the multiple settings available. — Kylie Joyner
Pros: Preheats quickly, features quartz element for even heating, easy to read LCD display, 11 different cooking functions, comes with cooking accessories
The Oster Toaster Oven is the only toaster oven that costs less than $100 to make our list. What sets it apart is the smooth electronic control panel that operates much like a built-in microwave oven. With dimensions of 19.5 by 14 by 11 inches, it does take up a fair amount of counter space, but it also fits a 9 by 13-inch casserole dish or baking pan. You can use this model to toast six bread slices or bake a 12-inch pizza.
The cooking functions included in the Oster oven include defrost, toast, convection bake, warm, pizza, bake, and broil, which runs at any temperature for proper melting and browning.
The Oster Toaster Oven was reviewed by a number of experts. Good Housekeeping liked it because of the consistent and even toasting as well as the convection cooking abilities. However, the reviewers found it cooked slowly and emitted excessive heat. Top Ten Reviews noted that this Oster model has an outstanding touchpad that is ideal for people who have trouble turning knobs. And, the Best Toaster Oven Reviews liked that the oven features an interior light and large capacity.
At the time of writing, the Oster oven had over 3,300 five-star reviews on Amazon. Buyers enjoy this unit because it holds an accurate temperature and runs quietly. Others found it had completely replaced their full-sized oven. The only complaint we could find is that there may have been a manufacturing defect at some point since some buyers found the handle got extremely hot and required a potholder to open.
Pros: Easy-to-clean, dishwasher safe accessories, completely digital touchpad
The Panasonic NB-G110P Flash Xpress is unique because it uses double infrared heating. Unlike other toaster ovens that need to pre-heat for a few minutes, infrared heating elements bring the oven to temperature immediately. The infrared baking element penetrates inside the food, while the front element efficiently cooks the outside. This model has five shades of browning to pick from and six pre-programmed auto-cook modes, including frozen waffles, frozen hash browns, frozen pizza, reheating rolls, toast, and quick reheat.
The Flash Xpress comes with a square inner tray, baking tray, and removable crumb tray. And, it has an interior light so you can monitor the progress of your meal. The interior is large enough to accommodate four pieces of bread or pizzas up to 9-inches in diameter.
CNET performed an in-depth review of the Panasonic NB-G110P Flash Xpress. The reviewer liked that it employs infrared heating, which allows it to cook faster than other models, and the presets functioned like they should. Consumer Search also gave it high marks for achieving convection-quality cooking without using convection and cited a field test that put it on par with other convection toaster ovens. Amy Says Cook recommended the Panasonic toaster oven for retired people, singles, college students, and couples without kids for toasting, heating leftovers, and cooking frozen foods. Each of the expert reviews mentioned that the unit seemed inordinately small.
The Panasonic Flash Xpress has more than 2,400 reviews on Amazon, and 85% of them are four stars or higher. Users found that it does a good job at cooking what it can cook. For instance, the toaster oven was not designed for baking cakes or pies, and it apparently will not bake a chicken. But, it does an excellent job of reheating leftover pizza without burning it. Also, buyers report that cleaning it up is simple.
Pros: Uses infrared heating technology for even cooking
At around $180, the Breville Compact Smart Oven and the Cuisinart toaster oven are the two most expensive options on our list. This model is similar to the Breville BOV450XL. It uses Element IQ technology for even heating, has eight preset programs, features 1,800 watts of power, and has a pull-out crumb tray. The BOV650XL has an interior that is 33% larger, coming in at 0.6 cubic feet versus 0.45 cubic feet. It can also handle a 12-inch pizza, versus the 11-inch pizza you can make with the BOV450XL.
The Breville Compact Smart Oven is further down our list because we liked the compact design of the Mini Oven better. If you want a larger Breville toaster oven, you might consider the company's largest option, the BOV800XL, which holds six slices of bread, a 13-inch pizza, and will still fit under most cabinets because it’s 16.25 inches high.
Good Housekeeping, Consumer Search, and The Best Toaster Oven Reviews all give the Breville Compact Smart Oven fairly positive reviews. Good Housekeeping puts a lot of emphasis on the toasting abilities of toaster ovens, and the reviewers found this model toasts consistently and quickly and liked that it had seven toast settings. Consumer Search liked the smart heating elements and one-touch cooking. And, The Best Toaster Oven Reviews found it was a good compact alternative to the BOV800XL, Breville’s largest toaster oven model.
About two-thirds of the reviewers on Amazon gave the Breville BOV650XL five stars. Amazon Buyers give this appliance high marks for its even heating and toasting abilities. Buyers had mixed reviews when it comes to other heating functions of the device. Some were impressed with how it baked, broiled, and roasted. Others found this oven to be overpriced for how well it baked.
Pros: Great at toasting bread, comes with a heavy-duty broiling pan
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When selecting a blender for your kitchen, you’re going to want one that’s powerful enough to do whatever job you need, whether it’s creating a simple smoothie or crushing ice. The Breville BBL910XL Boss Superblender lives up to its name with its powerful 1,500-watt motor and three stainless steel blades that deliver perfect blending results every time. Here are our picks for the best blenders you can buy:
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